Scared (Patrick Stump Imagine Short Story)

Part 2

You have trouble keeping your focus on the road ahead of you. Tears blur your vision and the only thing on your mind right now is what happened last night and what happened just then back there.

"Hey, Mommy?" Gabby asks, looking at you through the rear view mirror.

"Yeah, baby?" You reply, your voice trembling.

"Why were you and Daddy fighting?"

You chuckle nervously, "We weren't fighting."

"Yeah you were. You were yelling at Daddy and Daddy was yelling at you. Why are you guys fighting so much?"

"Daddy and I just aren't getting along, sweetheart," You tell her, "So tonight we're going to have a sleepover at Grandma's house! You love when we go see Grandma. Aren't you excited?"

"Mommy, I don't like it when you and Daddy fight," Her lips quiver and you can see the tears now glistening in her eyes. It kills you to see her like this. "Why do you and Daddy fight, Mommy?"

Your grip on the steering wheel grows tighter and you force yourself to keep your eyes forward, replying softly, "I don't know."

There's a short pause before she inquires, "Are you and Daddy going to break up, Mommy?"

"I don't know, Gabby. I really don't know..."

*****

You and your mom are in the dining room, sitting at the table together. Your daughter is upstairs, sound asleep, in the spare bedroom you and her are going to be staying in tonight. You told your mom about what happened.

"Oh, sweetheart..." Your mother says sympathetically, rubbing your back on comfort. "I'm sorry."

"I just...I don't know what to do, Mom. It's just...I'm worried for Gabby. And myself, but I'm more so worried for her." You put your head in your hands. "Mom, you should've seen him. It's like...It's like he was a completely different person. I almost didn't recognize him."

"Why would he even do something like that to you?" She inquires concernedly.

"Well, he was angry...and he just kind of...it just kind of happened."

You were upstairs in the bathroom giving your daughter a bath. Gabby picked up a handful of bubbles and blew them at you. You laughed before doing the same to her, sending her into a giggling fit.

Over her laughter, you heard the sound of breaking glass. You looked over your shoulder before rising to your feet and telling Gabby you'd be right back.

You slowly walked downstairs and heard Patrick scream in frustration. You followed his voice and found him in the kitchen, throwing glasses from the cupboards down to the floor. The cups shattered and glass shards went flying across the tile floor.

"Patrick, what are you doing?" You asked him worriedly. He looked over at you before picking out another glass and throwing it on the ground. "Patrick!"

"WHAT?" He yelled back at you.

"What happened? Why are you doing this?" You questioned.

He ignored you and grabbed another glass, but before he could throw it to the ground, you grabbed his wrist. "LET GO OF ME!" He boomed, trying to rip his arm out of your grasp.

"PATRICK! STOP!" You shouted, dropping to his level since nothing else seemed to be getting through to him, "PUT THE GLASS BACK AND TALK TO ME!"

"NO! LET GO-" He began to say when he ripped his arm out of your and brought his other hand up, smacking you straight across the face.

Your head jerked to the side, a burning sensation in your cheek.

His breathing was heavy as he stared at you, his eyes wide. He set the glass down on the counter before brushing past you and out of the kitchen. You stayed there, stunned, your mind spinning.

"Mommy?"

You looked over your shoulder and saw Gabby standing behind you, a Disney princess towel wrapped around her and water dripping from her body onto the kitchen floor, a look of horror marking her face.

"Mom, I-I know he didn't mean it," You confide in her, "I know he was only acting out of anger, but...I just...I don't feel safe anymore. I'm afraid he's going to hurt me again. Or even worse, hurt Gabby. And I would rather have him hit me a hundred times than him to even try to lay a hand on her."

Your mother sighs, "(Y/N), I don't know what to tell you. But...I've known Patrick almost as long as you have, and what you told me he did...that seems completely out of his character. Something must really be wrong."

"If something was wrong, he would've told me. He's never not told me when something was wrong before. Are you saying he's lying to me?"

"No, but maybe he's keeping something from you. Maybe something personal."

A blanket of silence falls over the two of you.

"I told him I wanted a divorce," You decide to bring up, the statement mumbled under your breath. You hang your head and start playing with your hands, "And that I was going to fight for full custody of Gabby once the divorce went through."

"Are you really going to do that?"

"I don't know..." You sit back in your chair, "I mean, I know deep down that it's the right thing to do. Because I have no idea what's going to happen next time he gets angry and I don't want either of us to be there when it happens. But at the same time, it feels wrong. Because I'd be taking Gabby away from her dad. And...I don't want Gabby to go through what I had to go through. Growing up without a dad."

Your mother glances over at you.

"And Patrick...he's an amazing dad, he really is," You go on to say, "He does his best to come home as much as possible. And he makes Gabby so happy. Like...whenever the door to the house opens, she always asks if it's him. She loves him, Mom, and he loves her. And taking her away from him..." You groan and rest your head on the dining table, "...I'm lost. I don't know what I want to do."

Your mom places her hand on your shoulder, "Why don't you go see him tomorrow? It'll give him some time to calm down and some time for you to think things over, decide what you really want to do."

"Alright," You agree.